Protests in Peru have already left at least 18 dead

The protests in Peru demanding early elections and the closure of Congress after the dismissal of Pedro Castillo have already left at least 18 dead, according to official figures, although the number varies if deaths are counted in traffic accidents linked to road blockades and the impossibility of transfers to health centers. Health Minister Rosa Gutierrez said there were 18 dead. However, the newspaper La República and the AFP agency report another six fatalities in accidents related to roadblocks. In the absence of a centralized registry, the numbers differ by the information of provinces and departments and by the sources that record them: local police, Ombudsman’s Office and health portfolios, among others. So far, the most serious situations occurred in Ayacucho, where yesterday there were eight deaths in the attempt to take over the airport, and in Apurimac, where 6 deaths have been counted. Then, in the departments of La Libertad, Arequipa and Huancavelica the numbers vary. In addition, the Armed Forces are intervening after the declaration last Wednesday of President Dina Boluarte to declare a State of Emergency to contain the demonstrations. During yesterday’s demonstrations in Ayacucho, in the attempt to take over the airport, which was under the control of the Army, there was repression and shots were fired at the body of the demonstrators. “When they were surrounded and that the mass was approaching, what they indicate (the reports) is that they would have given the order to ‘stop’ (before shooting); first shots in the air, but then they have been shots to the body,” Ombudsman Eliana Revollar told AFP. “This warrants a criminal investigation; These people have died from bullet impact,” he said. Meanwhile, the regional government demanded “the immediate cessation of the use of firearms and repression by the Armed Forces and the National Police of Peru” and condemned “any act of vandalism.” Meanwhile, President Dina Boluarte conveyed her deepest condolences to the families of the deceased: “We mourn the cries of the mothers in Ayacucho and we suffer the pain of the families throughout the country. Today, in a sad day of violence, we once again mourn the death of Peruvians.” The demonstrations demand, in some cases, the freedom of former President Pedro Castillo, the resignation of Boluarte, the closure of Parliament and general elections already. The most convening protests occur in the south, where five airports remain closed (Andahuaylas, Arequipa, Puno, Cuzco and Ayacucho).

Original source in Spanish